Summer is over. It is time to return to the rigors and joys of school. For some, summer meant soaking in the sun on beautiful beaches. For others, it may have entailed long hours at highly coveted internships. In my own case, it consisted of working part-time at a small legal office in my hometown. It may have lacked the relaxation of lounging on the beach or the networking of a more well-known company, but it also had many hidden advantages. In the end, the internship would be much more than the stepping stone I had expected it to be.
Perhaps the most obvious advantage of my internship was the location. The office was located just 15 minutes away from my home. I did not have to spend long hours commuting by car or train. The extra free time made my summer much more enjoyable. Another benefit of the location was being able to live at home for relatively little cost. If I had sought a more prestigious internship in a larger city, the housing costs alone would have been astronomical. Not every student has the option of living at home during the summer, but housing in most college towns is in abundance during that time. If one cannot find a hometown internship, a college town internship may have similar location-based benefits. Of course, students who live in cities do not have to worry about a commute, but the hometown internship also had less tangible benefits.
One of these less-than-tangible benefits was the ability to really get to know the people that I was working with. The legal firm that I worked with was made up of two attorneys and several paralegals. The small size made it very easy to work closely with the attorneys on a one-on-one basis. I helped with a variety of legal paperwork and research. The advantages of this were twofold. On one hand, I got a clear view of what goes on in the life of a small-town attorney. On the other hand, I also built a relationship with them. I gained a better understanding of the legal profession while also building a network that could speak of my abilities in the future. In a larger firm it is unlikely that I would have gotten the same one-on-one experience.
These are benefits that many do not take into account when embarking on an internship search. Many focus only on the popularity of the company or the possibility of a job offer. The above benefits may seem measly in comparison, but they do make hometown internships attractive to those with less-than-stellar resumes. The second benefit is especially important to securing future positions. A powerful recommendation can make all the difference in securing employment. The hometown (or college town) internship can be seen as a way to ease into your profession. Of course, this will not be a viable or positive option for everyone; but with the tangible and abstract advantages, it is an option worth considering.
